Sikhism Religion of the Sikh People Home > Introduction A way of life and philosophy well ahead of its time when it was founded over 500 years ago, The Sikh religion today has a following of over 20 million people worldwide. Sikhism preaches a message of devotion and remembrance of God at all times, truthful living, equality of mankind, social justice and denounces superstitions and blind rituals. Sikhism is open to all through the teachings of its 10 Gurus enshrined in the Sikh Holy Book and Living Guru, Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Who and What is a Sikh? The word 'Sikh' in the Punjabi language means 'disciple', Sikhs are the disciples of God who follow the writings and teachings of the Ten Sikh Gurus. The wisdom of these teachings in Sri Guru Granth Sahib are practical and universal in their appeal to all mankind. "I observe neither Hindu fasting nor the ritual of the Muslim Ramadan month; Him I serve who at the last shall save. The Lord of universe of the Hindus, Gosain and Allah to me are one; From Hindus and Muslims have I broken free.

I perform neither Kaaba pilgrimage nor at bathing spots worship; One sole Lord I serve, and no other. I perform neither the Hindu worship nor the Muslim prayer; To the Sole Formless Lord in my heart I bow. We neither are Hindus nor Muslims; Our body and life belong to the One Supreme Being who alone is both Ram and Allah for us." (Guru Arjan Dev, Guru Granth Sahib, Raga Bhairon pg. 1136) "Any human being who faithfully believes in: (i) One Immortal Being, (ii) Ten Gurus, from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh, (iii) The Guru Granth Sahib, (iv) The utterances and teachings of the ten Gurus and, (v) the baptism bequeathed by the tenth Guru, and who does not owe allegiance to any other religion is a Sikh." (Rehat Maryada, Sikh Code of Conduct) Philosophy and Beliefs There is only One God. He is the same God for all people of all religions. The soul goes through cycles of births and deaths before it reaches the human form. The goal of our life is to lead an exemplary existence so that one may merge with God.

Sikhs should remember God at all times and practice living a virtuous and truthful life while maintaining a balance between their spiritual obligations and temporal obligations. The true path to achieving salvation and merging with God does not require renunciation of the world or celibacy, but living the life of a householder, earning a honest living and avoiding worldly temptations and sins. Sikhism condemns blind rituals such as fasting, visiting places of pilgrimage, superstitions, worship of the dead, idol worship etc. Sikhism preaches that people of different races, religions, or sex are all equal in the eyes of God. It teaches the full equality of men and women. Women can participate in any religious function or perform any Sikh ceremony or lead the congregation in prayer. History and Practices The founder of the Sikh religion was Guru Nanak who was born in 1469. He preached a message of love and understanding and criticized the blind rituals of the Hindus and Muslims. Guru Nanak passed on his enlightened leadership of this new religion to nine successive Gurus. The final living Guru, Guru Gobind Singh died in 1708.

During his lifetime Guru Gobind Singh established the Khalsa order (meaning 'The Pure'), soldier-saints. The Khalsa uphold the highest Sikh virtues of commitment, dedication and a social conscious. The Khalsa are men and women who have undergone the Sikh baptism ceremony and who strictly follow the Sikh Code of Conduct and Conventions and wear the prescribed physical articles of the faith. One of the more noticeable being the uncut hair (required to be covered with a turban for men) and the Kirpan (ceremonial sword). Before his death in 1708 Guru Gobind Singh declared that the Sikhs no longer needed a living and appointed his spiritual successor as Sri Guru Granth Sahib, his physical successor as the Khalsa. Guru Gobind Singh felt that all the wisdom needed by Sikhs for spiritual guidance in their daily lives could be found in Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the Eternal Guru of the Sikhs.

Sri Guru Granth Sahib is unique in the world of religious scriptures because not only is it accorded the status of being the spiritual head of the Sikh religion, but besides the poetry of the Gurus, it also contains the writings of saints of other faiths whose thoughts were consistent with those of the Sikh Gurus. Sikhism does not have priests, which were abolished by Guru Gobind Singh. The Guru felt that they had become corrupt and full of ego. Sikhs only have custodians of the Guru Granth Sahib (granthi), and any Sikh is free to read the Guru Granth Sahib in the Gurdwara (a Sikh temple) or in their home. All people of all religions are welcome to the Gurdwara. A free community kitchen can be found at every Gurdwara which serves meals to all people of all faiths. Guru Nanak first started this institution which outline the basic Sikh principles of service, humility and equality. The most significant historical religious center for the Sikhs is Harmiandir Sahib (The Golden Temple) at Amritsar in the state of Punjab in northern India.

It is the inspirational and historical center of Sikhism but is not a mandatory place of pilgrimage or worship. All places where Sri Guru Granth Sahib are installed are considered equally holy for Sikhs. SIKHISM: origin, history, holy text Sikh origins: No consensus exists on the origins of this religion. Historians and specialists in Eastern religions generally believe that Sikhism is a syncretistic religion, originally related to the Bhakti movement within Hinduism and the Sufi branch of Islam , to which many independent beliefs and practices were added. Some Sikhs believe that their religion is a re-purification of Hinduism; they view Sikhism as part of the Hindu religious tradition. Many Sikhs disagree; they believe that their religion is a direct revelation from God - a religion that was not derived from either Hinduism or Islam. Sikhism does contain many unique postulates and principles that are quite different from both Hinduism and Islam. Joseph D. Cunningham (1812-1851), the author of "A History of the Sikhs" (1848), observed: "It has been usual to regard the Sikhs as essentially Hindu...

yet in religious faith and worldly aspiration, they are wholly different from other Indians, and they are bound together by an objective unknown elsewhere." Sikh History: The founder of Sikhism was Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, (1469-1538) who was born in the Punjab area of what is now Pakistan. At Sultanpur, he received a vision to preach the way to enlightenment and God. He is responsible for the saying "There is no Hindu, there is no Muslim" which has since become one of the pillars of Sikhism. He taught a strict monotheism, the brotherhood of humanity. He rejected idol worship, and the Hindu concept of caste. Guru Nanak and Panth (his followers) later built the first Sikh temple at Katarpur. A succession of nine Gurus (regarded as reincarnations of Guru Nanak) led the movement during the period from Guru Nanak's death until 1708. At that time, the functions of the Guru passed to the Panth and to the holy text, considered the 11th Guru.

Mogul emperors ruled a large area of South Asia from the 16th century until the end of the 18th century. They attempted to convert the Sikhs to Islam, but were unsuccessful. It has been said of one of the Sikh Gurus (considered by many Sikhs to have been the last guru) that "Had there been no Guru Gobind Singh, the entire country would have gotten circumcised" i.e. been converted to Islam. In 1801, the Sikh state of Punjab was founded in Northern India by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. According to a historian Vincent Smith, "The Punjab State was neither a traditional Indian territorial State and monarchy, nor merely a dictatorship of one community over another. There was an element of partnership with other communities." An invasion by Great Britain triggered the Sikh Wars (1845-1849). The British successfully gained control over all of India. After independence in 1947, occupied India was partitioned on religious grounds into a mostly Muslim Pakistan and mostly Hindu India. A mass migration of Sikhs and Hindus from Pakistan to India and a reverse migration of Muslims resulted, with immense loss of life.

Some Sikhs have been seeking an independent homeland since the late 1940's. Sikh Holy Texts: The holy granth, the Shri Guru Granth, was initially compiled by the fifth guru, Shri Arjan Dev Ji. Subsequently, it was updated to include the writings of the sixth to ninth gurus. The tenth guru, Gobind Singh Ji assembled his writings separately into a number of books, including "Dasam Granth" The holy granth consists of hymns and writings by the first nine Gurus, along with religious text from different Muslim and Hindu saints like: Kabir Ji, Baba Sheik Farid Ji, Bhagat Namdev, Bhagat Rav Dass Ji, etc. The Shri Guru Granth itself is considered the 11th and final Guru, and the Sikh's holiest religious text. It was made so by Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji.

At least two English translations are available online: "The Khalsa Consensus Translation [of the Guru Granth Sahib]...is regarded by some Sikh scholars as being among the finest and most accurate English translation currently available." It is available online at Srigranth.org allows people to search the Sikh scriptures in English, Punjabi, Hindi and in transliteration. Numbers of Sikhs: The precise number of followers of any religion is difficult to estimate. Some sources, like telephone surveys and government censuses count adults who identify themselves as from a specific faith. Predictions by religious organizations are generally higher because they might count individuals as members who do not consider themselves of that faith. Various sources estimate that Sikhism has about 23 or 24 million followers, making it the fifth largest organized religion in the world. It is surpassed in numbers only by Christianity , Islam , Hinduism , and Buddhism . If one defines the term "religion" very inclusively, it is the ninth largest religion in the world, being fewer in numbers than secularists, and followers of Chinese traditional religion, African traditional religions and aboriginal faiths.

1 The Real Sikhism web site estimates that about 21 million (89%) Sikhs live in the Punjab, India. About 400,000 (2%) live in North America, and 360,000 (2%) are in the UK. (2004 data) 2 The Sikh population of Canada increased from about 147,000 in 1991 to 278,000 in 2001, according to the Canadian census. 3 Independent estimates between 1995 and 2005 range from 160,000, by the 1997 Britannica Book of the Year, to 300,000 by Christian Century magazine. Data on the number of Sikhs in the U.S. is highly variable: The ARIS study of 2001 derives its data from random phone calls to over 50,000 American households. They count how many American adults identify themselves with each religion. They estimated that only 57,000 U.S. adults consider themselves as Sikhs.

The 1996 Britannica Book of the Year estimates that there are 240,000 Sikhs in the U.S.; the 1997 edition estimates 190,000. In 1999, the New York Times estimated a population of 175,000; the Salt Lake Tribune estimated 500,000. 5 A hoax (we think) related to a Sikh holy day: Dozens of Internet listings of seasonal days of celebration and observance include Khamapana as a Sikh holy day. On 2001-AUG-22, Sikhs were said to celebrate a day of forgiveness. This is apparently a hoax, initiated by someone and replicated through the Internet. Sikhs continually seek forgiveness; they don't save it up until an annual holy day. On 2001-JUL-25, we found over three dozen references to Khamapana on This had shrunk to 20 by 2006-MAR.

References used: Sikhism 101: Facts, History, Beliefs, Gurus, Traditions, And Signs Of The Faith | The Huffington Post Sikhism 101: Facts, History, Beliefs, Gurus, Traditions, And Signs Of The Faith 01/31/2014 09:31 am ET | Updated Jan 31, 2014 220 Lauren Markoe Religion News Service Photography - Chippu Abraham via Getty Images (RNS) Sikhism is the world’s fifth-largest religion, a monotheistic faith founded in the Punjab region of India about 500 years ago. Most of the world’s 25 million Sikhs live in India, but more than 500,000 make the U.S. their home. Here are some facts about what Sikhs believe and Sikh culture. * Sikhs believe everyone, men and women, has equal status before God, who created the universe and all faiths. Human beings are encouraged to develop their moral character through generosity, humility and self-reliance.

* Sikh means “seeker of knowledge” in Punjabi, the language of India’s Punjab region and of Sikhism’s holy books. * Sikhism was divinely revealed to its first guru, or prophet, Guru Nanak, who died in 1539. Nine gurus followed him, the last of which, Guru Gobind Singh, died in 1708. * Sikhs keep their hair uncut, or natural, as a sign of living in harmony with God. Men — and some women — cover their hair with turbans as a mark of their faith. Boys start wearing a patka over their hair when it is long enough to tie into a topknot. * The kara is a steel bracelet worn by Sikhs to remind them of the unity of God. The kirpan is a ceremonial dagger (though not a weapon) that is meant to remind Sikhs of the duty to fight injustice. * The Sikh place of worship is known as a gurdwara, and it is where the Sikh holy book, the Guru Granth Sahib is kept, though copies are also found in Sikh homes. In a gurdwara, all remove their shoes, and women cover their heads.

* The central Sikh shrine is the Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, India, which is also known as the Golden Temple. * After services, Sikhs partake in the langar, a communal meal, typically of Punjabi food, cooked and served by volunteers. * The first Sikhs came to the U.S. about 100 years ago. They are most concentrated on the coasts, with a large Sikh population in Queens, N.Y. * Sikh is properly pronounced “sik” but you will likely not be corrected for saying “seek.” Sources: The Sikh Coalition, Sikhism At A Glance; the Sikh Studies Unit from the Kaur Foundation; Singh Mann, Gurinder, et al. Buddhists, Hindus, and Sikhs in America. Oxford University Press, 2001. Also on HuffPost: BBC - Religions - Sikhism: Origins of Sikhism Origins of Sikhism This article provides a brief history of Sikhism. On this page Sikh world history Origins of Sikhism Sikhism was born in the Punjab area of South Asia, which now falls into the present day states of India and Pakistan. The main religions of the area at the time were Hinduism and Islam.

The Sikh faith began around 1500 CE, when Guru Nanak began teaching a faith that was quite distinct from Hinduism and Islam. Nine Gurus followed Nanak and developed the Sikh faith and community over the next centuries. Militarisation of the Sikhs Sikhism was well established by the time of Guru Arjan , the fifth Guru. Guru Arjan completed the establishment of Amritsar as the capital of the Sikh world, and compiled the first authorised book of Sikh scripture, the Adi Granth. However, during Arjan's time Sikhism was seen as a threat by the state and Guru Arjan was eventually executed for his faith in 1606. The sixth Guru, Hargobind, started to militarise the community so that they would be able to resist any oppression. The Sikhs fought a number of battles to preserve their faith. The Sikhs then lived in relative peace with the political rulers until the time of the Moghal Emperor, Aurangzeb , who used force to make his subjects accept Islam. Aurangzeb had the ninth Guru, Tegh Bahadur , arrested and executed in 1675.

The Khalsa The tenth Guru, Gobind Singh , recreated the Sikhs as a military group of men and women called the Khalsa in 1699, with the intention that the Sikhs should for ever be able to defend their faith. Gobind Singh established the Sikh rite of initiation (called khandey di pahul) and the 5 Ks which give Sikhs their unique appearance. Gobind Singh was the last human Guru. Sikhs now treat their scriptures as their Guru. After the Gurus The first military leader of the Sikhs to follow the Gurus was Banda Singh Bahadur. He led a successful campaign against the Moghals until he was captured and executed in 1716. In the middle of the century the Sikhs rose up again, and over the next 50 years took over more and more territory. In 1799 Ranjit Singh captured Lahore, and in 1801 established the Punjab as an independent state, with himself as Maharaja. He proved an adept ruler of a state in which Sikhs were still in a minority. Although a devout Sikh, he took part in religious acts with Muslims and Hindus as well.

Defeated by the British After Ranjit Singh died in 1839 the Sikh state crumbled, damaged by vicious internal battles for the leadership. In 1845-6 troops of the British Empire defeated the Sikh armies, and took over much Sikh territory. The Sikhs rebelled again in 1849, and were defeated by the British, this time conclusively. The Sikhs and the British Raj After this final battle, the Sikhs and the British discovered they had much in common and built a good relationship. The tradition began of Sikhs serving with great distinction in the British Army. The Sikhs got on well with the British partly because they came to think of themselves less as subjects of the Raj than as partners of the British. The British helped themselves get a favourable religious spin when they took control of the Sikh religious establishment by putting their own choices in control of the Gurdwaras. Good relations between Sikhs and British came to an end in 1919 with the Amritsar massacre. 1919 - the Amritsar massacre This was a shameful event in the history of British India.

In April 1919 British troops commanded by General E H Dyer opened fire without warning on 10,000 people who were holding a protest meeting. The troops killed about 400 people and wounded 1,000. Dyer felt that he had been obliged to teach a moral lesson to the Punjab. Realising the damage that had been done, the British rapidly retired Dyer, but not without promoting him first. Some historians regard the Amritsar Massacre as the event that began the decline of the British Raj, by adding enormous strength to the movement for Indian independence. In October 1997, Queen Elizabeth II made the gesture of laying a wreath at the site of the massacre. Background to Amritsar - the partition of India When British India gained its independence in 1947; it was divided between India and the Islamic state of Pakistan. The Sikhs felt badly treated and reluctantly chose to join India. The Sikhs were unable to demand their own state, because there were too few of them to resist Pakistan’s claim to the Punjab. Only by siding with India were they able to keep part of the Punjab, although not before appalling loss of life in communal massacres.

Sikhs lost many of their privileges, much of their land, and were deeply discontented. A state of their own The Sikh ambition for a state of their own was something that India would not concede. To do so would have allowed communalism (i.e. religious groupings) an unbreakable foothold in the politics of what was supposed to be a secular state. However, in 1966, after years of Sikh demands, India divided the Punjab into three, recreating Punjab as a state with a Sikh majority. This was not enough to stop Sikh anger at what they saw as continuing oppression and the unfair way in which they thought India had set the boundaries of the new state. They continued to demand various concessions from the Indian government. The invasion of the Golden Temple As Sikh discontent grew, the conflict gradually changed from a purely political conflict into a confrontation between Hindus and Sikhs; and then to real violence. A Sikh preacher called Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale became the leader of the most disaffected of the Sikhs. He was often portrayed as representing all Sikhs, although, actually, he did not.

In 1983 Bhindranwale and his closest followers took refuge in the Golden Temple Complex at Amritsar, the most revered place in the Sikh world. In June 1984 Indian troops launched 'Operation Blue Star'. They attacked the Golden Temple Complex, killing many of those inside, and seriously damaging the buildings. The assassination of Indira Gandhi This invasion of the holiest place of the Sikhs infuriated many Sikhs, even the non-militant. They saw the Indian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, who had ordered the invasion, as a deliberate persecutor of the Sikh faith and community. In October 1984, Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards. Four days of anti-Sikh rioting followed in India. The government said more than 2,700 people, mostly Sikhs, were killed, while newspapers and human-rights groups put the death toll between 10,000 and 17,000.

History of Sikhism - ReligionFacts ReligionFacts History of Sikhism Sikhism's Origins: The Life of Guru Nanak Guru Nanak (20 October 1469 - 7 May 1539) is the founder of Sikhism and the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. He was born in the village of Talwandi, now called Nankana Sahib, near Lahore in present-day Pakistan. His parents, Mehta Kalu and Matta Tripat, were Hindus and belonged to the merchant caste. Even as a boy, Nanak was fascinated by religion, and his desire to explore the mysteries of life eventually led him to leave home. Nanak married a woman named Sulkhni, of Batala; together, they had two sons, Sri Chand and Lakhmi Das. His brother-in-law, the husband of his sister Nanki, got a job for him in Sultanpur as the manager of the government granary, but his employment there wouldn't last long. One morning, when he was 28 years old, Nanak went (as usual) down to the river to bathe and meditate. It was said that he was gone for three days.

When he reappeared, filled with the spirit of God, he said, "There is no Hindu and no Muslim." It was then that he began his missionary work and the religion of Skihism was born into the world. Nanak's journeys, successors Tradition states that Nanak made four great journeys, traveling to all parts of India, and into Arabia and Persia; visiting Mecca and Baghdad. He spoke before Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Parsees, and Muslims. He spoke in the temples and mosques, and at various pilgrimage sites. It was during this period that Nanak met Kabir (1441-1518), a saint revered by both Hindus and Muslims. Wherever he went, Guru Nanak spoke out against empty religious rituals, pilgrimages, the caste system, the sacrifice of widows, of depending on books to learn the true religion, and of all the other tenets that were to define his teachings. Never did he ask his listeners to follow him. He asked the Muslims to be true Muslims and the Hindus to be true Hindus.

Nanak in Punjab After the last of his great journeys, Guru Nanak settled in the town of Kartapur (in Punjab) on the banks of the Ravi where he taught for another fifteen years. Followers from all over came to settle in Kartapur to listen, and sing, and be with him. During this time, although his followers still remained Hindu, Muslim, or of the religion to which they were born, they became known as the Guru's disciples, or sikhs. It was here his followers began to refer to him as teacher, or guru. It was here that the Guru told his followers that they were to be householders and could not live apart from the world—there were to be no priests or hermits. Here is where the Guru instituted the common meal; requiring the rich and poor, Hindu and Muslim, high caste and low cast, to sit together while eating. Here is where Lehna, later to be Guru Angad, came to be with Guru Nanak. Just before Guru Nanak died, he called his disciples together and requested them to sing Sohila, the evening hymn. To satisfy both his Hindu and Muslim follower as to the funeral arrangements it is said he did not allow his body to remain behind.

The Ten Gurus Sikhism was established and developed by ten Gurus during the period 1469 to 1708. Sikhs regard the ten Gurus not as divine, but as enlightened teachers through whom God revealed his will. Each Guru appointed his successor. Guru Nanak Dev was the first Guru and Guru Gobind Singh the final Guru in human form. Guru Gobind Singh designated the Sri Guru Granth Sahib the ultimate and final Sikh Guru. The ten Gurus are: - Guru Nanak Dev (1469-1539). The founder of Sikhism (see above). - Guru Angad Dev (1504-52). Developed Gurmukhi, the script used for the Punjab language and composed 62 hymns that were later included in the Guru Granth Sahib. - Guru Amar Das (1479-1574). Became Guru at the age of 73. Organized three annual gatherings for Sikhs, set up the first pilgrimage site at Goindval Sahib and introduced Sikh rituals for birth and death. His most famous hymn, Anand Sahib, is part of Sikh daily ritual.

- Guru Ram Das (1534-1581). Founded Amritsar, the holy city of Sikhism. His followers dug the pool that became the holy lake surrounding the Golden Temple. Composed the Lavan marriage hymn, still used in Sikh marriages. - Guru Arjan Dev (1563-1606). Collected the hymns of previous Gurus and added 2616 of his own to form the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhism. He also built the Golden Temple. - Guru Hargobind (1595-1644). The son of Guru Arjan. Proclaimed that the Guru is a military leader as well as spiritual leader, leading to conflict with the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. - Guru Har Rai (1630-1661). Grandson of Guru Hargobind. - Guru Har Krishan (1656-1664). Younger son of Guru Har Rai. Became guru at the age of 5 and died of smallpox at the age of 8. He is the only Guru depicted in art without a beard.

- Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621-75). Great-uncle of Guru Har Krishan. Was barred from Amritsar by Sikh rivals, so founded the Sikh center of Anandpur. Was beheaded in Delhi by Muslims for helping Brahmins avoid forcible conversion to Islam. - Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708). Son of Guru Tegh Bahadur. Second only to Guru Nanak in importance, he is often shown prominently next to Nanak in Sikh art. Resisted oppression by Muhgal and Hindu authorities, exemplifying the Sikh ideal of the heroic saint-soldier. Founded the Khalsa and Sikh baptism, composed many poems, and nominated the Sikh sacred text as the final and enduring Guru. Article Info Sikhism Origins, Sikhism History, Sikhism Beliefs Share The Sikh tradition was founded by Guru Nanak in the late 15th century C.E. in the Punjab region of what are today India and Pakistan. According to Sikh beliefs, the same revelatory spirit inhabited Guru Nanak and his nine successors. Today, this spirit can be found in the teachings of the Guru Granth Sahib, the foundational scripture of the Sikh tradition.

The Guru Granth Sahib's hymns describe and praise God, and provide moral guidance for all Sikhs. Sikhs reject ideas of divine incarnations, and hold that liberation results from being absorbed into God. Sikhs also reject the social doctrine of caste, and adhere to practices of equality in worship and life. The centers of Sikh worship are known as gurdwaras ("house of the Guru") and langar (communal refectory). All Sikhs must enter a gurdwara with bare feet and a covered head. A Sikh worship service includes prayer and singing hymns from scripture. The service is concluded by the distribution of karah prasad, a sacramental food made of flour, butter, and raw sugar that is shared by all to demonstrate equality and the rejection of caste. Sikhs attempt to live balanced lives of worship, work, and charity centered on community. Besides gurdwara worship, festivals are also important community activities. Harpreet Singh explains what it means to be a Sikh in today's world.

Patheos Galleries Related to Sikhism Sikhism: 5 Things To Know About The Sikh Religion | The Huffington Post Sikhism: 5 Things To Know About The Sikh Religion 08/05/2012 03:34 pm ET | Updated Aug 06, 2012 3.5k Jahnabi Barooah Assistant Editor, Religion In light of the tragic shooting at the Wisconsin Sikh Temple , HuffPost Religion offers this brief introduction to Sikhism in hopes of increasing understanding and appreciations for this great world religion. Sikhism is the fifth largest religion in the world with a population of upwards of 30 million worldwide. There are an estimated 250,000 Sikhs in the United States having first arrived in the late 19th century. Below are five basic facts about Sikhism: 1. Belief: Sikhism is a monotheistic religion, and the basic Sikh belief is represented in the phrase Ik Onkar meaning "One God." 2. History: Sikhism was founded in the Punjab region in India in the 15th century by Guru Nanak Dev.

Sikhism broke from Hinduism due, in part, to its rejection of the caste system. 3. Scripture: The primary source of Scripture for Sikhs is the Guru Granth Sahib, regarded as the living Guru, after the final Guru in human form, Guru Gobind Singh, passed away. 4. Place of worship: A Sikh place of worship is known as the gurdwara. The word gurdwara means "doorway to God." Men and women normally sit apart in the gurdwara. Traditionally there is no official clergy within the Sikh tradition. Over time however, priests have become more commonplace. Many gurdwaras employ priests to conduct services, while many others are run entirely by members of the local congregation. 5. The Five Ks: The Five Ks are the articles of faith that Sikhs wear as ordered by the 10th Guru, Guru Gobind Singh. Most Sikhs wear one or more of the articles but only Sikhs who have taken amrit, a ritual analogous to baptism, wear all. They include: Kesh, or unshorn long hair, which is protected by a dastaar, or turban.

The dastaar is worn by men and some women to cover their long hair. But most women keep their hair long and uncovered, except for when entering a gurdwara. A kangha is a small wooden comb meant to keep the hair combed twice a day. A kara is an iron bangle to be worn on the hand used most. A kachera is a specific undergarment for men and women. A kirpan is a short dagger. Reactions to the shooting at the Wisconsin Sikh Temple Wisconsin Shooting BBC - Religions - Sikhism: Guru Nanak Guru Nanak A brief overview of the life of Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion. On this page Guru Nanak Guru Nanak © Guru Nanak (1469-1539) was one of the greatest religious innovators of all time and the founder of the Sikh religion. Guru Nanak's birthday is celebrated by Sikhs on April 14th by the Nanakshahi calendar . (The date according to the lunar calendar changes annually but is usually in November.) Nanak's religious ideas draw on both Hindu and Islamic thought, but are far more than just a synthesis.

Nanak was an original spiritual thinker and expressed his thoughts in extraordinary poetry that forms the basis of Sikh scripture. Little is known about the life of Nanak, but Sikh tradition has a much-loved set of stories or janam sakhis which relate various incidents from his life, and include many of his important teachings. Nanak was born about 40 miles from Lahore (now in Pakistan) in 1469. Sikh traditions teach that his birth and early years were marked with many events that demonstrated that God had marked him out for something special and was keeping an eye on him. His family were Hindus, but Nanak soon showed an advanced interest in religion and studied Islam and Hinduism extensively. As a child he demonstrated great ability as a poet and philosopher. One famous story about Guru Nanak tells of his rebellion at the age of eleven. At this age Hindu boys of his caste would start to wear the sacred thread to distinguish them. Nanak refused, saying that people should be distinguished by the things that they did, and their individual qualities, rather than by a thread.

Nanak continued to demonstrate a radical spiritual streak - arguing with local holy men and sages, both Hindu and Muslim, that external things like pilgrimages, penances, and poverty were of far less spiritual importance than internal changes to the individual's soul. He worked for a while as an accountant but while still quite young decided to devote himself to spiritual matters. He was inspired by a powerful spiritual experience that gave him a vision of the true nature of God , and confirmed his idea that the way to spiritual growth was through meditation and through living in a way that reflected the presence of the divine within each human being. In 1496, although married and having a family, Nanak set out on a set of spiritual journeys through India, Tibet and Arabia that lasted nearly 30 years. He studied and debated with the learned men he met along the way and as his ideas took shape he began to teach a new route to spiritual fulfilment and the good life. The last part of his life was spent at Kartarpur in the Punjab, where he was joined by many disciples attracted by his teachings.

The most famous teachings attributed to Guru Nanak are that there is only one God, and that all human beings can have direct access to God with no need of rituals or priests. His most radical social teachings denounced the caste system and taught that everyone is equal, regardless of caste or gender. SIKHISM: Beliefs, paractices, symbol, names Goal: The goal of every Sikh is to build a close, loving relationship with God. Deity: Sikhs believe in a single, Formless God, with many names, who can be known through meditation. his concept is similar to Islam whose followers believe in a single God who has 99 names. The Mool Mantar, the first hymn composed by Guru Nanak, is recited daily by many Sikhs. It contains a description of many of the attributes of God: There is only one God; His Name is Truth; He is the Creator; He is without fear; He is without hate; He is beyond time (i.e. is immortal); He is beyond birth and death; He is self-existent. 1 Only he can be worshiped.

Rahras, a Sikh evening prayer states: "[O God] since I have fallen at your feet, I do not care for anybody else. I do not follow the religious ways preached by various religions believing in Ram, Mohammed, Puran or Qur'an. The Simritis, Shastras and the Vedas lay down different doctrines. But I do not recognize any of these. O God, I have written these hymns with your grace and kindness. All that has been said is in fact spoken by you." 2 Reincarnation: They believe in samsara (the repetitive cycle of birth, life and death), karma (the accumulated sum of one's good and bad deeds, and reincarnation the belief of a rebirth following death. These beliefs are similar to Hinduism . "Each individual has many reincarnations, but being born a human means the soul is nearing the end of rebirth. God judges each soul at death and may either reincarnate the soul or, if pure enough, allow it to rest with him." 1 Caste system: Sikhs have rejected the caste system of the Hindu religion. They believe that everyone has equal status in the eyes of God.

This is a very important principle that permeates all Sikh beliefs, behaviors, and rituals. Code of Conduct: During the 18th century, there were a number of attempts to prepare an accurate portrayal of Sikh customs. None received the support of most Sikhs. Sikh scholars and theologians started in 1931 to prepare the Reht Maryada -- the Sikh code of conduct and conventions. It is "the only version authorized by the Akal Takht, the seat of supreme temporal authority for Sikhs. It's implementation has successfully achieved a high level of uniformity in the religious and social practices of Sikhism" 3 throughout the world. It contains 27 articles. Article 1 defines who is a Sikh: "Any human being who faithfully believes in (i) One Immortal Being,

Question: Who was the founder of the Sikh religion?
Answer: GURU NANAK